Short Story-The Man On The Stairs

The Man on the Stairs

It was a tiny sound but it woke me up because it was a human sound. I heldmy breath and it happened again, then again; it was footsteps on the stairs. I triedto whisper,
There's someone coming up the stairs, but my breath was cowering, Icouldn't shape it. I squeezed e!in's wrist in pulsing units, three pulses, then twopulses, then three pulses. I was trying to in!ent a physical language that could enterhis sleep. "ut after a while I realized I wasn't e!en squeezing his wrist, I was #ustpulsing the air.$hat's how scared I was; I was squeezing air. %nd still the soundcontinued, the man coming up the stairs. &e was walking up in the slowest possibleway. &e had all the time in the world for this, my god did he ha!e time.

2ike maybe he's disabled, or !ery old. *rmaybe#ust really tired. Maybe he's already killed e!eryone else on the block andnow he's all worn out. In moments I can almost see him, leaning against thebanister, his eyes swimming in the darkness. My eyes are open too. e!in's eyes areshut, he is so far away and he always will be. $he silent pause stretches longer andlonger and gradually I wonder if the man is there at all. $he only sound is e!inbreathing. )hat if I spend the rest of my life in this bed, listening to e!in breathe."ut lo. % strong and certain creak issues from the stairwell and what I feel is thrillingrelief. &e is really there, he is on the stairs, and he is coming closer in his ownbreathtakingly slow way. If I li!ed to see daylight I would ne!er forget this lesson incare. &e was putting more care in to hunting me than I had e!er put into anything inmy life. %nd it was worth it, because he had earned my admiration. I don't thinkanyone has e!er admired me the way I admired him. )hat if I were to spend thismuch time listening to Marilyn, what would happen+ Maybe she would adore me andthen I would respect her and we would both become professional #azz singers or atleast reckless but safe dri!ers. Maybe. Maybe the man on the stairs would come inour car with us and when he looked scared by our reckless dri!ing I would hold hishead close to my lips and